Melita Cimerman from Maribor

"Learning without thinking is empty, thinking without learning is dangerous!" is the guiding principle of Melita Cimerman, director of the Adult Education Institute - Maribor Folk University. She has reached this point by a complicated career path. Along the way, she has tried her hand at education as a teacher of German and Italian, at translation and at managing international projects, but she has also been drawn to political work and work in societies. Long years of study have resulted in two successive habilitations at the University of Maribor. It was no easy task to take over the management of an institution with such a rich tradition - the first language courses and general education classes were organised in Maribor way back in 1922. Melita Cimerman has preserved the tradition, and at the same time - with her colleagues - has expanded and modernised the area of operation. She develops new approaches in conjunction with the Institute for Adult Education and through involvement in international projects, such as the European network of learning towns. The Institute offers 150 adult education programmes, enabling students to acquire some 20 professional titles, and is the only provider in the region of programmes for people with special needs. Melita Cimerman needed additional training in order to meet the challenges of such a large-scale programme. In recent years, she has attended headmaster school, learnt computing, attended professional seminars and language schools abroad, and participated in a bilingual workshop Cross-border cooperation in the countryside. One important source of incentives is international participation in Phare programmes, as well as membership of expert groups, associations and societies.